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Pacific Lots is one of the most established real estate developments in Costa Rica, having been in business for 23 years. Located in the southern pacific region of Costa Rica the project has 17 phases in development over 4,000 acres, more...

Turtle Cove Lake & Yacht Club is a master planned, gated, lake front residential community on Lake Arenal. On offer are 42 homes and homesites. A marina with 10 slips is in place with room to expand. The road from more...

The Palms offers beachfront condominiums for sale in Costa Rica, located at the southern end of Flamingo beach. All 34 condominiums are two story, two bedroom units with approximately 2,300 square feet of living area. A range of community facilities more...

Flamingo Cove offers 45 condos in 4 Mediterranean style buildings with ocean views located on Flamingo Beach, Costa Rica. Flamingo is a sought after location with a wide range of upscale amenities and services available in close proximity. The drive more...

Finca las Brisas is an eco-inspired development set on over 150 acres of forest and pasture land. The property ranges from 750 feet to 1,300 feet above sea level, around 20 minutes from the ocean. Finca las Brisas has a more...

Eagle's View comprises 40 acres of property on the San Juan mountains between 3000 and 3600 feet in elevation, 2 miles from Nosara. Ocean view lots overlooking Nosara and Playa Guiones. Homes are currently under construction.

Diamante Del Sol comprises 50 units in 5 towers between 8 and 10 floors in height located in Jaco, Costa Rica. The master plan includes a commercial center with casino, restaurant, day-spa and fitness center. The project is just 800ft more...

Cortijo Los Laureles offers 136 apartments set within four 9 story buildings designed around a central plaza. The project is located in Costa Rica's Central Valley. This area of Costa Rica is becoming increasingly popular as a retirement location given more...

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Real Estate Market Overview

International property investors have been buying real estate in Costa Rica for decades. Its stable economy and half a century of uninterrupted democracy do much to strengthen the conviction of real estate investors. Costa Rica real estate investors are bolstered by the growing tourism numbers and its ‘Switzerland-like neutrality’ (a reference to Costa Rica not having a standing army). And the fact that the country has only 0.1% of the worlds land mass but a massive 5% of its biodiversity does nothing to hurt its image as a long-standing eco-tourism destination.

Costa rica real estate and tourism are linkedWith over 2 million international tourist arrivals in 2010 according to UNWTO, Costa Rica attracts about as many visitors as Nicaragua and Panama combined. And discerning international property investors know what tourism does to property prices.

The buzz is also apparent in the online world. There are more searches for Costa Rica real estate on google.com than there are for any other Central American country. Given the global economic crisis we expect to see the 2009 tourism numbers come in lower. But, especially when compared to its regional competitors, Costa Rica is still firmly on the world stage as an important tourism destination.

As testament to Costa Rica’s success at attracting tourists, a number of large hospitality brands have set up operations. This was particularly evident in the Guanacaste province in the north of the county, with luxury launch following luxury launch during the boom years, all in relatively close proximity to Liberia international airport. There’s a good reason why other countries in Central America such as Nicaragua and Panama, market themselves as the ‘next Costa Rica’ seeking to emulate it’s growth trajectory.

Costa Rica real estate and the global downturn

But Costa Rica needs to keep on its toes as its neighbors roll out the map for retirees and international real estate investors. And the international property sector hasn’t been immune from the current global economic crisis. For example in October 2008 the $800 million St Regis hotel project, planned for Playa Coyol and financed by Lehman Brothers, was put on hold with the marketing manager citing rising construction costs and uncertain financial conditions. Other high profile suspensions followed.

Optimists will find some solace in the fact that Costa Rica’s international real estate market has been shielded somewhat from the collapse in house prices witnessed in the developed world. (Our 2009 and 2010 market updates, for example, revealed small falls in asking prices for real estate in master-planned communities). It’s relatively underdeveloped mortgage market for international real estate, formerly considered a weakness, has meant that it has avoided the rampant foreclosures that have tugged at the bottom of the market in the US.

But property pessimists will point to the high profile project suspensions and insist that with re-sales (sales from end-user to end-user) continuing to undercut developer direct prices in many projects, it may take some time before prices rise once again.

But it’s not all about Gunacacaste. Puntarenas is also claiming a piece of limelight with Manual Antonio National Park one of the most visited of Costa Rica’s parks and the tourism hub of Jaco beach comprising 15% of our sample. The Central Valley (with 10% of developments in our survey) is another area attracting Costa Rica real estate investors looking for a high altitude metropolitan lifestyle.

There’s information on price points for real estate in the country across different categories on our Costa Rica property page. Subscribe to the Reveal Real Estate newsletter for more Costa Rica real estate analysis and comparisons of property prices across Central America.

Types of property ownership

Costa Rica real estate can be held as freehold (fee simple) title or as a concession. Rights of possession title also exist in certain areas. Coastal properties are governed by specific regulations: The first 200 meters above high tide mark is defined as the Maritime Zone. The first 50 meters of this are owned by the public, overseen by the government, and are inalienable. The remaining 150 meters of land is known as concessions property, and can be leased from the corresponding Municipality.

Purchasing and registering property

Costa Rica real estate transactions require the services of an attorney and notary. (In Costa Rica an attorney can also be a notary.) Once the price and terms have been negotiated a conditional sales contract is signed allowing time for due diligence before a full commitment to buy is established.

This is followed by a legal due diligence process where the buyer’s attorney reviews the property documents, obtains a literal certification from the National Registry, a catastral plan from the Catastral office and a tax clearance certificate from the Municipality. If a technical due diligence is required, this runs as a parallel process.

When all conditions for the sale have been met, the attorney drafts the sales agreement as a public deed which is signed by both parties and notarized. The Costa Rica real estate deed is then registered at the National Registry.

What’s special about Costa Rica real estate?

Stable and well-governed.

Home to world class hospitality brands.

A rich biodiversity and recognized eco-tourism destination.

A major target for foreign direct investment.

Good potential for income generating vacation property in tourism areas.

Why Costa Rica stands the test of time

25 Comments → “Costa Rica Real Estate”

I used to think I wanted to retire to Panama. I guess I didn’t realize that Costa Rica was “stable and well governed.” Since the recession, I will be doing well to retire at all, so I haven’t been thinking about Central America recently. But looking at this list, perhaps I should be taking another look.

Hi Susan, If you get to visit, you’ll find Costa Ricans (Ticos) to be fiercely proud of their democracy. And rightly so; the country has the longest standing democracy in the region. Well worth considering if you are exploring real estate in Central America.

I was always privy to moving to Costa Rica. Perhaps one day soon I will go there for a vacation and take a look around at some properties. Certainly I will use the listings provided here for references.
Thanks

Hey Debra, thanks for the note. Yes you’ll see that phrase “the next Costa Rica” cropping up in sales copy for other Central American countries hoping to follow in the country’s footsteps when it comes to tourism and real estate investing.

Ionut, I hear you. You are certainly not alone in that. But remember that the cost of living in Costa Rica (and elsewhere in Central America) is far less than back home. This is one of the key reasons why baby boomers and retirees who are finding it hard to keep up with rising costs at home are checking out what’s on offer a little further south.

The southern Pacific region of Costa Rica has been made much more accessible with the completion of the Costanera highway extension below Quepos. Check out http://www.PacificLots.com to see what we’ve been doing down there for the past 23 years.

I have been blessed to have vacationed twice in Costa Rica. The first time was at a HUGE and GORGEOUS mountain estate near Dominical, which was my most favorite vaca spot EVER! The second time was in the mountains near Atenas and I didn’t like that area. Too congested, and too far inland. However, since visiting, it has become my dream to retire in Costa Rica, near the Dominical area. As others have mentioned above, I’m not sure I’ll EVER be able to retire, tho, but I WILL continue to dream, as that is the first step towards reaching a goal, and I will NEVER choose to limit my God and what He has planned for my future! You just never know! And meanwhile, I will have fun looking at Real Estate and pretending I’m there again!

Hi, I am going to be writing an article soon about the best companies to work with when buying real estate in Costa Rica, and would like to include you in my list. please let me know if that would be okay, thanks….

I would like more information on price comparisons between the different regions in Costa Rica and the different demographics between all as well. Maybe you can refer me to a text with that information. I am 66 years of age and could retire at any time however I can not live in a high altitute because of COPD.

Hi Kirk, Getting hold of official data on the real estate market is difficult in Costa Rica (and the rest of Central America for that matter). We’ve put together a market snapshot to start to get some data for buyers. Have a look here – http://www.revealrealestate.com/snapshot. We have future research projects planned where we’ll dig a little deeper so thanks for your feedback.

Interested in a property in Costa Rica . Price 100000 to 130,000. Also would like to know about taxes, medical facilities. Can pets be brought into the country? Any places for sale that are furnished? Cost of transporting a few of my personal belongings and anything else you can think of that would be needed to make this transition…passports?